Hal Robert Myers says, "My aim is to see the humanity of a situation, not just the circumstance. A photograph allows us to freeze the choreography of our surroundings in order to more closely inspect the environment – but more so, to recognize in ourselves the shared human experience. It suspends time, lets you roll the moment around on your tongue and get a flavor of things, maybe even imagine what happened before or after the picture was taken.

As a photojournalist, I pursue this documentation, especially out there on the cultural fringe. But another aim is to capture and preserve the local traditions of people whose image is typically shaped by either travel brochures or a patronizing view of their relatively poor economic conditions… and to connect those moments to our common humanity.

I’m what Cornell Capa considered to be a “concerned photographer.” These days, just about any photographer who is sensitive to what feels like a world of multiplying social injustices must qualify. I have a particular interest in protecting the environment as well, and the two go hand-in-hand: we’re beginning a long march, so to speak, toward a period of global climgration (migration caused by climate change) – impacting and exacerbating a host of critical issues.

I’ve chosen a couple areas of interest to focus on in response, including unapologetic support of the promising (if not idealistic – something we need!) Young Progressives of America.

The politics of progressivism is not a photographic project, yet, but my participation in the Women’s March on Washington, among several others, and a relationship to members of the Lakota Sioux in Standing Rock, North Dakota, has produced engaging photography that intends to influence in viewers an empathetic position.

Recent time spent navigating the (figurative) minefield of Afghanistan was an intense experience that further drives my sense of urgency to capture and convey the cultural heritage of fragile societies that are on the brink of either destruction or implosion. I can name several; sometimes erosion is hard to detect until the bottom drops out.

Having lived in five countries and spent time in well over 50 has imbued my photographic perspective with a certain sensitivity that comes from fully immersive travel experiences. I only began photographing seriously about 12 years ago – long enough for some, late for embarking on a lifetime passion. That said, I wasn’t quite ready before then – preoccupied as I was with living in Saudi Arabia or Singapore, or adjusting to five years of life in Japan.

There was a sort of inventory of life experiences I had to absorb before translating my philosophy, which took years to fully congeal, into a photographic vision. I’m grateful for the necessary time spent in creative gestation.

It’s also helped that I’ve been in marketing for more than 25 years, having earned my credentials and several awards in the business world. This has chiseled and honed a significant facet of my creative style, which spans corporate strategy (especially in the field of sustainability), graphic design, copy writing, video production, web development and most anything that has required creative ideas to shape rhetorical messaging. I’ve been lucky to work professionally as the person I actually am.

The takeaway is that, as suggested elsewhere, we are all inherently connected. I’m baffled by the taking of knee-jerk political positions that build walls around narrow-minded and homogeneous thinking, which itself springs from fear.

Real solutions don’t come about through exclusion, but (however trite this might sound) acts of inclusion – whose root word “include” is an apt description for the container on which we all live: Planet Earth. Contrary to forces trying to pull us apart, the colorful threads of diversity are what bind the world closer together, much like an Afghan rug or a handmade Mexican scarf, whose strength is derived from the alternating warp and weft of their fibers.

Our strength and, I suspect, future depends on taking an interwoven approach.
Hopefully some of that colorful diversity comes through in my photographs, most of which I have yet to take. And that’s the cool thing about taking pictures: there is so much of this amazing world to discover, it only takes positive intent, and perhaps a well-meaning aim, to easily see."

MAN'S BEST FRIENDS by Harry Longstreet(Click on image for larger view)

Harry Longstreet says, "No one just takes up space. The human condition is an entire
canvas of thoughts, emotions and reactions to circumstances. In my
photography I try to capture the truth about diverse people and how
they live and reflect their respective spaces.

My subjects never know they’ve been photographed. I don’t set-up or
pose any shot and never employ anything but available light."

THE BEGINNING OF THE END by Harry Longstreet(Click on image for larger view)

TWO OUT OF THREE by Harry Longstreet(Click on image for larger view)

ASLEEP by Heather Williamson(Click on image for larger view)

Heather Williamson says, "Hello, my name is Heather. It's been some years to be able to say my name and feel good about it. Many lives I've lived and had to rid (in just this lifetime) and I've realized, my name can be very important. It can be the name associated with the ones who are forgotten and it can be the name I go to when I have forgotten about myself. Photography is very important for me, it's the air I breathe. It allows me to feel something other than me, but it also allows me to see something that is me in everything. When I don't want to feel a certain way or if I'm not feeling at all, the subjects of my work provide me with courage, strength, empathy, and humility. They help me continue.

It can be easier to keep going or look away, but what some ignore, I gravitate towards. Sometimes I'm the only one who can see "it" and most times, it's suffering. (Occasionally it's happiness and that's when I can get a bit envious) Either way, feelings are very valuable to me. They are like names, they too are currency. Most shots were taken right after I felt like I was about to snap, die, "lose it" and fly... Away.
...Far away from this world, these ways, these laws and this pain. But somehow, someone or something appears and I'm saved. When I'm behind the camera, no one is aware of the pain in my mind and if anything, the pain gives way to understanding and for that short amount of time behind the camera, I feel right.

Some can tell others what to do and many are more than willing to do as others say, but I want to see and show what you are, as is... I will wait, take one shot then walk (or drive) away. It's important for me not to tell you how to feel or what to think, but my name is the one who shares stories, hopefully making you interested. Interested in what it may be like for another and even me. I want you to be interested and I'd like to continue being interested and...

Interesting.
Why? Love just does.
xx-h-"

Growing up Native American (with Gypsy roots) under the politically active and watchful eye of her adoptive grandmother, Heather collected and redeemed many qualities while absorbing endless ways and points of view. After her grandmother's death, she found herself catapulted into emancipation at the age of 14. This would also be the year she dove deeper into film photography.

In 2003, Heather moved to Los Angeles which became her home for the next decade.
In LA she embraced photography, music, film and writing, while also working alongside others for commercials, music videos, indie films and photo shoots. Towards the end of 2012, she found herself isolated, depleted and upon her return from Cuba, her passion for life absorbed into a life barely alive. "I found myself slowly isolating, not knowing where to go or who I was or was becoming. How does anyone know what to do when they see someone's face changing?
I was so afraid, so, I stopped everything. I stopped creating."

In 2014, after multiple moves, suicide attempts and hospitalizations, Heather found herself in the California Desert where she would be in treatment for over a year. She learned here, the most valuable piece of currency is her name. A long drawn out dirt road lay ahead, but she didn't mind. She also realized, your name is just as valuable as hers.
In the present, she's back to her roots and the subject of all her work is herself. No longer is anyone far from her, for she too (has) is waiting in government lines, below poverty lines and trying to make sense of self and time.
“YOU HAVE TO GO OUT OF YOUR MIND TO COME TO YOUR SENSES”- Timothy Leary

She has a blog for her writing, "The Recovering Life", a mixture of prose, lyric, epic, as well as opinion, magical realism and open letters about manipulation, gaslighting, race and disease. She is getting closer to solidifying a script (10 years in the making) and has written the first series of books for its prequel. She's also working on a series using American Flags for voice as well as language depicted using characters from other lives. She collaborates with a friend for music where she is the songwriter. She doesn't consider herself as singer, more of a Poetic Thug. One of her favorite things is to record sounds and make short films. She also records herself and others. She calls these, "Noisy Letters" and is embarking on installations.

A statement from the artist:
"It's not easy to open myself up and be vulnerable, but it's harder not to. Sometimes I feel everything I live with is a curse, but in these moments where I am no longer "Me", I feel right. Some are no longer here to speak and some are not able nor willing to speak, but I'm here, so I will… "We Must Speak About What's Killing Our Kind" (Even if this means without words)

Heather currently resides in the California Desert. She does Zazen, enjoys Paul Bloom and is interested in human behavior, psychology, theology, linguistics, religion, past lives and current ones. She enjoys horses, driving dirt roads, and watching dust fall off her boots.

Katy Parks Wilson is a Los Angeles-based, California born and raised natural light photographerwhose work encompasses abstract, cityscape, still life, architecture, and what she calls the stolen moment. Her passion for exploring community and lifestyles, particularly those in the process of intense change has taken her all over the world, from Cuba to Detroit, to a Peruvian orphanage, to the Salton Sea, but she always comes back to LA, city of angels. The light of the city, its high stakes industries and continual reinvention make for endless opportunities to capture the drama of being human. A natural storyteller, Parks may employ her photography to document a moment, evoke an emotion, or simply take a closer look. she plays with the facility of the camera pushing in for a close-up, working with the light, considering different angles or experimenting with processing options to complete the final image. The result:

Timeless yet unconventional images that command attention. Parks Wilson has been commissioned by hotels, television and film production companies and private collectors to create custom images.

Ken Papagan says about 'Men With Hats',"On Listening, offers a dichotomous moment for the viewer to speculate their own story of what might be being told versus what might be being heard. By their nature they can never be exactly the same. (Los Angeles 2017)

"I love any photograph that compels me to make up my own story of what is really going on in that moment. Documentary Photography offers me the opportunity to peer into the lives of everyday people as the singularly unique individuals that each of us are. Inspired by André Kertész’s seminal work: On Reading, for decades I have pursued several separate themes On Being; including: On Being Photographed, On Listening and On Working."

Ken began taking photographs with a Polaroid camera when he was 14 years old, sparking a lifelong passion. In his teens he moved on to becoming a self-taught photographer using a 35mm SLR and was awarded his first exhibit in the lobby of the corporate headquarters of Polaroid in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1973. In 1975, he was awarded a Fellowship to work on his Masters Degree in Photography and Cinema at The Ohio State University where he taught Photography. For two consecutive summers merit scholarships were bestowed by the Banff Centre for Fine Arts in Banff, Alberta, Canada to study Advanced Color Photography and Dye Transfer Color Printing. During this period he exhibited at student and faculty galleries at OSU and the Banff Centre as well as local galleries in Columbus, Ohio.

In 1977, growing disillusioned with the type of photography required to make a living with his camera, he stopped making images to pursue a career in television as a Director, Writer, Producer and eventually, Executive. In 2010, he left his career in media to return to his art of love: Photography. Today, he continues his work with documentary, experimental, abstract and landscape photography.

Contact: streetphoto60@gmail.com

MOHAWK MEN by Ken Papagan

Papagan says, "It is a sociological pattern that individuals of synonymous mind and disposition will don similar sartorial styles that can reflect their world views. When observing intense On Listening conversations within such groupings it instills me to ponder the nature of their discourse."
(Los Angeles 2017)

STRIKE A POSE by Ken Papagan(Click on image for larger view)

Papagan says,"For me, On Being Photographed is the most existential of my themes because with it my camera becomes a type of Voyeur who witnesses a moment being captured that unbeknownst to the subjects, may live on for lifetimes as the definitive representation of their individual essences during a particular age."
(Los Angeles 2017)

BOY AND GUN by Ken Weingart(Click on image for larger view)

Ken Weingart says, "The fine art photography that I am currently creating is focused on the obstacles and situations that people find themselves in. I capture the essence of the denizens of California and the world— the locals, the visitors and the struggles they encounter. My main interest is shooting people and connecting them to life stories through journalistic style fine art photography. I want to continue creating people oriented stories — both the non-fiction genre with political and social purpose — as well as staged i.e. “controlled” storytelling. I hope to branch out further in art with a storytelling process utilizing mixed media, collage, and video art — blending them all together with photography."

Ken Weingart has worked and lived in New York City, Los Angeles, Italy, and Spain. He has won numerous awards including being selected for the Communication Arts Photo Annual, and his editorial and advertising work has been widely published all over the world. His client list has included French Vogue, Entertainment Weekly, and he has been pursing fine art photography for six years. Ken’s Art and Photography Blog features original in depth interviews of many of the world’s most important artists including: Roger Ballen, Gregory Crewdson, Joel Peter Witkin, Holly Andres, Thomas Demand, Alejandro Cartagena, Arne Svenson, Mark Seliger, Erwin Olaf, Martin Schoeller and more. The Blog has been syndicated in prestigious journals and sites such and Lenscratch, PetaPixel, Digital PhotoPro, and American Photo.

Kimberly Adamis says, "Photography and Art is my life. I eat breathe & sleep visualizing my next projects. My goal is to try and capture as much emotion in the moment I've been given. Hopefully the viewer will enjoy investing his/her time to soak it all in and escape for a minute."

Kimberly Adamis is a Los Angeles-Based artist/photographer. Her creative process varies from project to project and the ever-changing environment of Los Angeles keeps her work fresh and unique. When looking at her work you see she explores the multitudes of personalities & perspectives keeping the viewer curious yet gratified.

Adamis says of 'CREEPY CLOWN', "When I look at this photo I ask myself, “Did someone forget they’re wearing a clown costume?” The way he’s glaring at the woman in foreground haunts me."

SPLASH OF FREEDOM by Kimberly Adamis(Click on image for larger view)

Adamis says of 'SPLASH OF FREEDOM, "There was something so freeing about watching this child play “chase” with the ocean waves. This photo feels like bliss and freedom to me."

THE SMILE by Kimberly Adamis(Click on image for larger view)

Adamis says of 'THE SMILE', "I had no intention of including this woman in the photo. I smiled at her to make her feel more comfortable and as I look through the viewfinder I saw her smiling back at me. It truly was the best view of my trip to Chicago."

BOOGIE NIGHTS I by Manuel Iallonardi(Click on image for larger view)

Manuel Iallonardi says, "In recent years I developed a deep sense of dissatisfaction in regard to how the photographic medium is involved in mainstream media usage. The idea that the photographer catches a certain moment in time, coming from Cartier-Bresson, still keep its charm among photographers while much more is to be investigated and analysed yet.

Following the readings of Barthes, Flusser and Arnheim I seek to explore the unique features of photographic medium in the broader system of Arts. More than just a trick on the timeline of our lives, photography works as a relevant catalyst in the politics of everyday life: it enhances our perception that something “has-been” (which doesn’t mean it give us coordinates in space and time); it allows a different degree of reproducibility; it imply the direct and close presence of the photographer in the frame of the scene; it suggests the unseen beyond the edge of the lens –namely, what is left behind the given degrees of sight-.

Having worked in a fashion photography studio I maturated an aversion towards the presence of an explicit subject. Most of my series focus on the escape from what I call “subject-o-cracy”. Although I recognize that a subject is always present when the human mind reconstruct a scene I find it stimulating to challenge the viewer in the way that he feels confused and without a clear reference point where to start the interpretation. I believe that street and architectural photography allow me to do so mostly.
However, the three pictures I submitted are part of a new series which winks to the age of ’50s and ‘60s and to the Straight Photography movement. The series is about a type of marginalization more and more visible in the so-called post-mediatic era. Nostalgia seems to be the boundary between the ordinary people and the new Freaks."

Manuel Iallonardi was born in Isernia on November 14, 1989. After his diploma he dedicated his time to study in the field of communication and visual arts in the region of origin.

In 2012 he graduated in Communication Sciences at the University of Molise. In 2014 he completed his university career, graduating in Public communication and advertising, once again at the University of Molise. With the guide of his university supervisor, he conducted an analysis on the eidetic properties of the photographic image and on the dynamics of photographic practice intended as a political action. As a result of the research period he elaborated two theses, respectively titled: <<The "double" in detail. Identity and diversity in photography>> and <<Photography and Genre. Representations of marriage in a small region of Italy through time>>. The activity of photographer assistant, alongside to the acquaintance with the academic environment, contributes to the exploration of the photographic medium in its entirety.

Born in Burbank, CA, Mara Zaslove received a BA in Dance and Sociology at U.C. Berkeley and later, received a Teaching Credential at U.C.L.A. After teaching Elementary School, she completed her M.A. in Counseling and Guidance from Cal. State, Northridge and became a licensed M.F.T., most recently working with emotionally disturbed children.

Her lifelong interest in photography allowed her to teach special needs children at a variety of institutions and was a volunteer photographer for the Inner City Arts program. In addition, she was the Staff Photographer for Diavolo: an internationally renowned dance company based in Los Angeles.

Mara's photographs have been featured in numerous exhibitions. Most recently, her work has been included in “15 Personal Projects” at LACP; 2017 exhibition: “Photo Shoot” at Black Box Gallery: 2017 International Nude Art Exhibition through Fusion Art; SE Center for Photography 2017 Open Exhibition; 2017 California Open at the TAG Gallery; 1st Annual Photographic Competition and Exhibition 2017 at L.A. Art Core; 2017 exhibit “Water and Sky” at bGGallery/ Bleicher Gorman Gallery at Bergamot Station, as well as a Finalist in the 8th Julia Margaret Cameron Award held in Berlin in 2016. She is an active member of the Los Angeles Art Association and LACP. She lives and works in Santa Monica. More information on her photography can be seen on her website at

Zaslove says, "My photographs are entries to my soul, connecting the intangible to the tangible through light, time and memory. Using natural light to capture what I feel in my heart and my eyes, taking photographs has become as essential to me as breathing air, and in some ways, has evolved into my sixth sense. I thrive on creating visual conversations that embrace the universality of aging, childhood, life on the street and how “human beings” impact the natural world.

Growing up with a father who was a fine artist, I was surrounded by his work and sensibilities. His influence made a profound imprint on me and I often find myself mirroring his visual style. I innately respond to form, patterns, shapes and composition and find that this early exposure permeates my sense of balance and style.

As my photography has progressed, I have been drawn to capture the human stories set in natural environments. Either candid or anticipated, I seek to convey a uniqueness particular to each individual that invites the viewer to explore their own life's path with that of the subject documented."

2017 Exhibitions/Group Shows

Two of my photos were selected by juror, Tim Anderson, to be included in the SE Center “Open” exhibition.
5 of my images were selected to be in the “Magic and Beauty” group show at Pilates and Arts in Echo Park.
My series “Don't Bring Me No Rocking Chair” was reviewed by Jonathon Blaustein in “A Photo Editor” 2017.
My series “Lifecycle” was highlighted in “The LA Dance Chronicle” by Jeff Stayton in support of “Life Stories” by Donna Sternberg.
Selected as a presenter for the “Open Show“ at Venice Arts in Venice, CA. My image, “Peeking Out” was juried into the 2017 Gala fundraiser.

My image, “Peony,” was curated into the 2017 Open Show at the Black Box Gallery in Portland, Oregon.
My image, “Sand Shoal,” was accepted into the 2017 fundraiser for CASA LA.
My photo, “A Time for Renewal,” was curated into the 2017 exhibition “High Holidays” through JAI and shown in a New York gallery.
My series “Don't Bring Me No Rocking Chair” was exhibited at the Veteran's Memorial Garden Room in Culver City in conjunction with the dance performance of “Life Stories.”
“Calalilly Lady,” a mixed media piece, was curated into the 2017 Spectrum Gestalt exhibition at the BG Gallery at Bergamot Station.
My image “Bound” was selected by the curators of MyDailyPhoto.com as one of the best photos from 2017.
"Peony” was curated by Scott Canty to be part of the 2017 California Open Juried Exhibition at the TAG Gallery.
“A Joyful Vision” was selected as part of the International Nude Online Competition/3rd Quarterly Nude Group Exhibition through Fusion Art, Palm Springs.
My photo, “Memories Past” was curated into the “She” exhibit at the A.Smith Gallery in Texas.
Fine Art Photo Awards: 2017 FAPA: recognized as an amateur nominee in the nude category: Lifecycle/Aging Gracefully series.
Selected by the jurors of Color It Red 2017 to be featured in the SHOWCASE PORTFOLIO section of the March/April 2017 issue of Shadow & Light Magazine.
My image “Cocooned” was accepted into the April Female Figure Exhibit at Beyond The Lines Gallery at Bergamot Station, CA.
2 of my images were selected by jurors Fatemeh Burnes and Peter Frank for the show, FRESH 2017, at the SOLA Gallery, Los Angeles.
2 of my images were selected by the juror, Gary Samson, to be part of the exhibition BODY/IMAGE at the Darkroom Gallery, Vermont.
Topanga Gallery Juried Open 2017, “Between Cultures,” juror: John Paul Thorton.
My image was accepted to highlight “Prayer 1” for the “Women of Valor” exhibition at AJU.
3 of my images were juried into the L.A. Artcore 1st Annual Photographic Competition and Exhibition: jurors were George Simian, Richard Vogel, Brian C. Moss, Karen Hampton and Jeff Alu.
My image, “An American Staple,” was curated into the group show “Make America” at Gallery 825, Los Angeles: juror - Nancy L. Meyer.
Word Jumble Gestalt: an exhibition of art made out of words. “They” Canvas Collage Photographic Overlay. bG Gallery at Bergamot Station, Santa Monica, CA. Exposed: The Contemporary Nude Photography Exhibition. “A Study in Beauty.” 1650 Gallery, Echo Park, CA.
6th CA 101 2017 juried art exhibition. “Bound” curated by Nina Zak Laddon. Riviera Village in Redondo Beach, CA.
LAAA 2017 Auction piece selected: Sand Shoal/From 40,000 Feet.
My abstract sand shoal image was accepted as a donation for JDRF: One Art exhibition; Artists for a Cure.
My image “Mermaid” was accepted by CASA of Los Angeles for their Wine and Art Fundraiser.
Holiday Bazaar at L.A. Art Share accepted my image “Sand Shoal” for their exhibition.

www.marazaslove.com

IN FLIGHT by Mara Zaslove(Click on image for larger view)

ON THE TOWN by Mara Zaslove(Click on image for larger view)

NAPS 1 by Martha Clarkson(Click on image for larger view)

Martha Clarkson manages corporate workplace design in Seattle.

Her poetry, photography, and fiction can be found in monkeybicycle, Clackamas Literary Review, Seattle Review, Alimentum, Hawaii Pacific Review. She is a recipient of a Pushcart Nomination, and is listed under “Notable Stories,” Best American Non-Required Reading for 2007 and 2009.

She is recipient of best short story, 2012, Anderbo/Open City prize, for “Her Voices, Her Room.”

WAITING FOR PICKUP 1 by Martha Clarkson(Click on image for larger view)

EVENING BLUES IN THE CITY OF LIGHT by Merja Varkemaa(Click on image for larger view)

Merja Varkemaa-Schneider says of her series, 'Entering the scene of one’s own life', "Through these images I wish to illustrate my vision of the individual in a big city or in life in general. Belonging, but yet detached. Having one’s view of the world. Walking with the others or just by oneself, partly there, but somewhere else at the same time. Involved and absent, with a sense of longing and in the pursuit of the undefined. Like an actor entering the scene of one’s own life. Showing life to the letter or enhancing it by the play of shadows and light and reflection? The reality or a story told? Or just that intangible inner feeling? My images are of that very moment."

Merja Varkemaa is originally from Finland but has been living in Paris for over 20 years. She has a Master of Arts degree in Translation studies (English, French and Swedish) from the University of Turku, Finland. Her passion for street photography originated from long walks in Paris witnessing in real life the scenes she had read in books or imagined in her mind. And then imagining further ones and showing the beauty of small passing moments in an environment where so many moments have passed before our days.

Exhibitions:

2017
Group exhibition during Festival Street Photography in Saint Raphaël 13-15 October 2017

Titles of the images:
Image 1: When They Come Marching In
Image 2: Lost in His Reflection
Image 3: Evening Blues in the City of Light

LOST IN HIS REFLECTION 1 by Merja Varkemaa(Click on image for larger view)

WHEN THEY COME MARCHING IN 1 by Merja Varkemaa(Click on image for larger view)

CHAPEAU by Michael Honegger(Click on image for larger view)

Michael Honegger says, "My work as a photographer is informed by the masks that a photograph, its subject, the camera and the photographer project in form and in content. The photograph is an artistic conceit that masks its creator's vision in layers of abstraction and deception. It may illustrate, distort or camouflage but the truth of the image is as elusive as the passing smile, the dangling cigarette ash, the nobility of the masculine or the vulnerability of the feminine. The very border of the image frame reveals, conceals and taunts the viewer with questions of what might have been or what never was. These images offers a glimpse of my vision of those random moments in time and space when someone or something peels back a layer to allow me to enter with my camera as a mask in place. It is my vision of the world with its many facades, perspectives, disguises and costumes, both literal and figurative.

Photography is a first love and second career for me. I spent my first career traveling the globe working on international development
projects for the Peace Corps and other international organizations including the World Bank, the Agency for International Development
and numerous NGOs. Having worked on long-term assignments abroad, I developed a keen eye for the cultures and peoples where I
worked. My one regret is that I never had the time or proper photographic equipment to record some of those early images and experiences on film.

My second career as a photographer began with intensive studies of black and white and alternative photographic processes at the Maine
Media College, where I received a Professional Certificate in 2004. I have also studied under a number of well-known contemporary photographers in the United States and in Europe. I am now a practicing photographer living in Nice, France and I have expanded my photographic repertoire to include fine art, documentary photography and alternative processes.

I exhibit my work wherever I am able including solo exhibitions in two Parisian galleries and group shows at the following galleries:
Joyce Gordon Gallery in Oakland, CA, PhotoPlace Gallery in
Middlebury, VT, ph21 Gallery in Budapest, Hungary, Gallery 136 1/2
in Manchester, CT, Center for Fine Art Photography in Fort Collins,
CO, Southeast Center for Photography in Greenville, SC, Rockport College in Rockport, ME and the University of Maine at Orono.

Several of my images have won awards in international photo competitions sponsored by the Prix de la Photographie in Paris. Recent images of the refugee situation in Lesvos, Greece were featured in major European newspapers including NRC Handelsblad (Amsterdam), Sudkurier (Bavaria), and in Amnesty International's first worldwide press release on the crisis.

I graduated from Duke University in 1971 with a BA in History and Spanish and received a MS degree from Georgetown University in
1973 with a focus upon International Law and Organizations."

Michael Stepansky says, "I am only interested in the world as it is, and in photography’s ability to capture, reflect, and interpret this world. Within this, I am interested particularly in people in their environments - natural, man-made, and social. I am not interested in depicting or analyzing suffering in my pictures, but the world also contains sadness, humor, loneliness, camaraderie, strength, and piercing beauty; these are the qualities that I look for, that I find wherever I go and, when lucky, commit to film."

Stepansky is the Director of Employment for the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health.

Stepansky lives in Holliston, MA with his wife, the children's book author Jane Kobuth, his son Kameron, and a black cat that looks ruby-red when the sun hits her just so.

Michael S Cohen says, "The draft for the Vietnam War ended for people born in 1956. I was born in 1958. So my first trip to Vietnam was in 2017 and I found a country full of life and joy. In Hanoi, that life begins at 5am on the streets around Hoan Kiem Lake where the entire city turns out, no matter the weather, to exercise. Young and old, using techniques from ancient tai-chi to a modern thing called “laughing yoga", all together in a cityscape that is perfectly reflective of the old and the new. These images were shot on one dreary April morning when the people provided the sunshine.

Michael was born and raised in the Boston area and still lives there…some of the time. His camera has taken him to some of the most photogenic spots on the globe and he is as likely to be found in an airport lounge as his living room. Michael’s first real photographic experience was through the lens of a Minolta SRT-101 where he learned photography as a journalist and a darkroom rat. That early work of capturing a moment influences his style today. His images have won numerous awards, are shown in galleries and hang in homes across the country.

In the advertising world for 35 years, his work is now making images and doting on grandchildren. Michael enjoys imparting what he’s learned to others. He conducts workshops and seminars in photographic technique and has been told he can make the exposure triangle actually understandable. He enjoys photographing with others as the creative energies are strengthened through shared experiences.

He says, “The bottom line is, I love to shoot. Whether it’s around the corner or around the world there are photographs to be made everywhere. The camera is a great introduction to the people I meet and it breaks down any language barrier almost instantly. Beautiful scenes of nature can be captured; precious moments frozen in time. We all move through our space in the world so fast that we miss some of the most miraculous moment around us. The camera slows me down. It encourages observation. And when I’m lucky, I get to be in the right place at the right time to capture that sliver of a moment through the lens. For me, photography is the never ending search for those slivers.”

Nancy Lehrer says, "I set out to capture daily life and interactions. These life events are sometimes celebratory but more often commonplace. They are made up of simple scenes, conversations and actions. Concentrating on layers, color, and gesture I aim to weave a specific action in with its backdrop. I am an observer, seeking to find and record a bit of today’s culture and community.

The images in this collection capture actions and activities of everyday life. Concentrating on juxtapositions and complex relationships, these scenes weave a specific action in with its backdrop to tell a deeper story, but in the long run they are simply observations that record a bit of everyday culture."

Nancy Lehrer, is an independent photographer based in Thousand Oaks, California and has been using photography to capture her unique world-view for most of her life. Her earliest photojournalist recognition came at a summer camp at the young age of 10 where, armed with her father’s Kodak Brownie camera, she earned the position of camp-photographer documenting the summer’s activities. Although she holds Masters degrees in Music and Computer Science, she has always held on to her passion for photography. Nancy has studied photography from several American photography masters including Jay Maisel, Sam Abell, Gerd Ludwig, and Arthur Meyerson. She has received several local awards, and lectures on photography in Los Angeles and Ventura County California.

Life at the Gardens: Documenting my parents transition from their home of over 50 years to an assisted living senior apartment. 2015

Ireland Impressions: Ireland as most often experienced… through a rain soaked window. Blurb 2015.

2-MegaPixels or Less is a book devoted to the exploration of cell phone photography before the iPhone. It is a collection of work consisting exclusively of images taken with a 2MP cell phone. Blurb 2008

Los Angeles, Yesterday Today is a photo documentary work of today’s culture against the backdrop of what is left of Los Angeles early 20th century architecture in downtown Los Angles, Hollywood, and Santa Monica. Blurb 2008

Nicholas Mariano says, "In 2016 I was fortunate enough to visit Cuba on a cultural exchange program and meet artists in Havana and surrounding cities and photograph the people and land marks in that country. I found the Cuban people to be friendly and always willing to be photographed. Several of my photos on the street were shot with a 300mm lens enabling me to capture people without their knowing they were being photographed. It was a rewarding experience and I look forward to visiting that island again in the future."

Nick Mariano is a professional photographer and published author. Nick works and travels throughout the world, giving him the opportunity to photograph a wide array of countries and peoples and do underwater photography at some of the best dive locations in the world. He is a member of a number of local art groups in Myrtle Beach and displays his photography at several galleries in the Myrtle Beach area. He has also recently begun writing and publishing both photographic and written novels.

Some of his recent Art Awards and Juried Entries include:

2017- Honorable Mention-William H Miller Gallery- Small Show
Juried into Comtemporary Art Gallery Online Water/Seascapes Art Exhibition
Juried into the Fusion Art “CityScapes” Show
Juried into “Cityscapes” at the Impasto Art Gallery, Longmont, CO
Juried into the 2017 Wilmington Art Show, Wilmington, NC
Juried into the WACG 20th Annual Juried Show at the Art Museum in Myrtle Beach, SC
Juried in the National Juried Exhibition in Hilton Head, SC
Juried into the Animal Kingdom Competition at The Fusion Art Gallery in Palm Springs, CA

Olivier Steiner says, ""You don't make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.

Ansel Adams said,"Our personal history is probably our principal inspiration and this does not only apply to photography."

Steiner says, "A childhood spent in a forester house, squeezed in the middle of the North Vosges woods (North East of France, near the German border) offers an unlimited playground in where everything is waiting to be discovered. The observation of a wild boar during a walk, a full basket of porcini mushrooms after a harvest, the ascent of one of the numerous sandstone rocks are wonderful and unforgettable memories that even time could not erase. Every new adventure brings the next one, deeper, bolder, more committed.

Different factors could be our guides. An encounter could be a source of inspiration, a movie could show a new path and what about those authors who put their footprints on your perceptions, and your goals?
Jack London, and later Jack Kerouac, Jim Harrison or the unavoidable Edward Abbey seem to show you the right way. They are pointing toward an utopian and ambiguous America. They are calling for discovery, curiosity, and travel.

Teaching physics and chemistry in the small town of Altkirch (east France, near the Switzerland border) in 2008, my hesitation wasn't long when I got a job offer from the International School of Houston, Texas. Of course, this state wasn't really in my dreams at this time, but this opportunity would already be a first step toward those landscapes and sceneries unknown and attractive.

Climbing mountains and cliffs was then less frequent because of east Texas geography, but it allowed plenty of time to focus on my passion for photography and I was able to bring some records from every ascent, adventure, wild backpacking hike, road trip and other travels in western USA.

Two years ago, I decided to call home Peru. It opened a new door on an unknown world and I started to enjoy wandering into a city as much as climbing a mountain. And making images."

After 7 years spent in Houston, TX, Olivier Steiner now lives in Lima, Peru. Born in France in a small village surrounded by woods, nature was of course his first love. Landscapes, trees and forest were the daily friends and became quickly the first photography subjects. After living in different continents, Olivier decided to focus more on the daily street life without leaving behind landscape photography.